Revival
by RedToast
Summary: The wrongly executed Impure Resurrection Jutsu brings the four Hokages back to life. With a destoryed village, turbulant alliances and past mistakes looming over each person, how can love find the time to bloom, let alone survive, in this ever changing world? Sakura x Tobirama
1. Chapter 1

Obito's eyes went wide in shock, unable to believe what had just happened. Instead of resurrecting only Madara which was the plan, all of the previous Hokage had come back too. The silence on the battlefield was deadly and the tension in the air was thick enough to be cut with a knife. The shinobi alliance looked on mix a mixture of fear and hope. They were hopeful because

Naruto turned his head to see his father standing there, as human as he was. Skin intact as well as the rest of him.

His dad was no longer dead. In his mind flashed so many possibilities of what could be; father and son reunited against the odds, a loving parent that he had never had the opportunity to have his whole life… the chance of a real family bond.

Meanwhile on the other side of the battle field Hashirama quickly scanned his body to make sure this was some sort of wicked trickery. After everything that Madara had pulled they were not too sure what was real and what wasn't. The surreal situation had caught everybody off guard and no one was quite sure what to say. Sakura openly gawked at Minato and a tsunami of questions flooded her mind, however she kept them to herself because she knew that she wasn't the only person who needed answers. But if they won, all would be revealed. They had to win; there was no way so many people had died just for them to lose when they were so close to victory.

Madara looked the most stunned out of all of them. His eyes narrowed dispassionately as all of his enemies had gained their full power. This would not stop him though, the ten tails was sealed inside him already, there was no way he was going to let over two centuries of meticulous planning go to waste. They would have to kill him first.

Not a second later the battlefield burst into a commotion of action as the Zetsu army attacked the Allied Shinobi Nations, and the previously dead Kages advanced on Madara and Obito. Minato rushed forward first, but hesitantly, he didn't want to die so soon after being revived. He threw jutsu after jutsu, but they were all either blocked or dodged easily; it seemed as though the only person who stood a chance against Madara was Hashirama, and said man was currently taking down the many Zetsu's relentlessly, without pause.

In a moment of distraction, Minato was hurled backwards with immense force, and cracked his skull when his body hit the ground. Crimson red gushed out of the side of his head and his vision swam, darkness threatened to claim him.

At times like this Sakura thanked kami for her choice to become a Medic Nin, and jumped in to heal her best-friends father. Pushing chakra into her palms, she could feel his skull reconnect once more and his skin close up, satisfied that he would not die from blood loss she jumped back, and summoned Katsuyu.

"Sakura-hime."

"Katsuyu, I need you to split and heal the all injured shinobi, okay?"

"Hai, Sakura-hime" without further ado, the giant slug multiplied into thousands of tiny versions of herself and set out to complete its task. Tsunade nodded approvingly at Sakura before refocusing on her battle.

It seemed to be a lost cause as no one could even touch Madara, he was a legend in his own right and only Hashirama was on his level. When the two men started to fight one-on-one, nobody interfered as this battle was fought by old friends now enemies. It was bitter and painful to watch. They made eye contact for a fleeting moment, but that was all that they needed. A mutual understanding crossed between them, this would be the last time and there was no holding back as each was set in their beliefs.

"Madara."

"Hashirama."

They were blurs, to those who watched a deadly force to be reckoned with and to be doubted at one's own peril. Tobirama watched on, this was the final battle between them and there would only be one outcome. He did not trust Uchiha and would never let one kill his brother. With that that in mind he turned his attention to Obito, the poor boy who had been manipulated into following Madara's crazed plan.

Kakashi looked at his former teammate with a forlorn expression on his face. It wasn't meant to happen like this. A wave of heartache rippled through his being and he pushed down the overwhelming urge to cry. Cry for the death of his mother. The suicide of his disgraced father. The death of the Obito he knew. The way in which Rin was killed. The sacrifice of his mentor. The hate that consumed Sasuke. It seemed as though his life was for tragedy and disaster.

A bitter taste filed his mouth as he stared at Obito. Kakashi did not want to fight. He was so tired. Was this the price of being a skilled shinobi? Everyone around you died. The Uchiha watched him, without a flicker of emotion in his eyes. He was too far-gone and redemption was out of the question.

"Obito... what happened to you?" The question went unanswered as the two went head to head. The copy ninja sent a kick towards his head and this attack was blocked before Obito retaliated with a punch to Kakashi's side, they carried on like this for minutes before they started to use their jutsu and the battle become more intense. Kunai clashed, jutsu clashed, _they_ clashed.

"Sakura-chan!" the hyperactive blonde landed beside her, "Let's find Sasuke! And take out these Zetsu's as team seven!"

Sakura nodded and with a determined look in her eye scanned the battlefield for her former teammate, once he was found, Naruto and her headed to towards him. Sasuke looked at them briefly as he continued to take down the Zetsu's.

"Teme! Let's work together and take 'em all out!"

"Hn."

The three stood in a triangular formation, back to back, as they fought. Naruto used his flying Rasengan to take down those in directly front of him: while Sakura went to a close range technique by weaponizing her chakra scalpels to stab the opponent in multiple areas that were vital. Sasuke's sword was effective for short distance but decided to mix things up by frying his opponents with Chidori at the same time. They made a formidable team.

Through the corner of his eye Sasuke glimpsed at Sakura, the look was calculating and possibly soft but there was no time to dwell on this as not long after, a large explosion shook the ground and create a large crater. Shifting his gaze, it came from Madara and Hashirama's battle. It seemed to be concluding, just as Obito and Kakashi's was as well.

There was a moment of silence as Kakashi forced his fist that was engulf with Chidori, through Obito's chest.

"Killing me the way you killed Rin, huh. How symbolic." Obito sunk slowly to the ground with Kakashi, who kept him in his arms. The Uchiha's eyes watered apologetically as they became glossy. "At least I can be with her now…" Obito Uchiha was dead. Kakashi looked at the lifeless body in arms and screamed in anguish. The sound was full of pain and self-hatred; it made Naruto's skin crawl while Sakura looked at him nervously.

They had never seen their sensei in such an emotional state and did not know what to do. Kakashi's body shook viciously as all of his supressed emotions bubbled over like an eruption. Sakura jumped to side immediately to find that he was going into shock from what just happened and without much thought, knocked him out.

She was not too sure if it was the right thing to do as was heavily skilled shinobi, but considered that it was the best thing to do. She called over one of the mini slugs, "Take him to a safe location, and heal him, okay?"

"Hai, Sakura-hime." The slimy creature slithered away at a rather quick pace for a slug. Sakura turned at her attention to the revived Tobirama, and stared at him in awe, undeniably he was handsome. He had this feral look in his eyes that gave him a dangerous edge and this kept her noticeably tense. Said man had noticed her gaze and turned to face her fully, he could do this because the battle was winding down and there were less Zetsu's to fight. With his attention on her, Sakura cold now get a good look at his dark red, nearly black, eyes. They were similar to looking in the depths of an abyss. Her analysing was cut short as Sasuke landed next to her alongside Naruto.

"Go to the front lines, you need to help heal Hashirama when his battle is over, he cannot die. Madara must not succeed." With a firm nod, the Medic Nin obeyed the former Hokage's command and bounded to the front, near Tsunade.

"Good work Sakura, you've learnt a lot." The woman let a smile grace her face as she looked adoringly at her student.

"Thank you, Tsunade-sama."

Even though they called it the front lines, they were all still a safe distance from the main fight; it was obvious that any closer would be perilous. Currently Madara was weakened, but Hashirama was worse off as blood was pouring profusely from his arm, at his rate he would bleed out before the combat ended. It seemed as though that was what Madara was waiting for.

He was currently atop Susanoo, while Hashirama was in sage mode, on his wooden thousand hands. This was a battle between giants. The two constructions punched and kicked at the other until Hashirama was finally able to see an opening and broke through the barrier and defence of Susanoo, knocking Madara to the ground. There was no chance of a smooth landing due to chakra exhaustion and overexertion. The Uchiha lay there stunned, as the impact cracked many ribs and left him breathless.

"It seems history repeats itself…" Madara looked up at Hashirama, similarly, to when they fought at the valley of the end. "Over a century later and I still can't seem to win against you." Hashirama grimaced at the memory. He would not plead with Madara like last time.

"Goodbye old friend. Your death shall be quick." The Uchiha accepted this and waited for the finishing blow, a kunai to the back of the head. Once done, Hashirama stood above Madara and allowed a single tear to slide down his face. The war was over. Tsunade order Sakura to help Hashirama while she healed the other shinobi. The younger girl started to heal him at once, and all the while, she was tense. Being in the presence of one of the greatest ninja alive was rather intimidating.

During this, all of the previous Kages walked towards their position, to talk about their unexpected revival. Sakura kept silent throughout, it was not her place to interrupt. Hashirama looked weary as they all did, and began to speak, "Does anyone have any idea how this happened?"

Minato nodded solemnly, "I'm not too sure, but I think the Impure Resurrection Jutsu went wrong somewhere, and I'm sure it's not just us that have been revived permanently. We need to see who else this could have affected." They all hummed in agreement and turned their attention to the eyes upon them. Now that the battle was over and many were receiving medical help, those who were uninjured openly gawked at the once dead legends.

Hiruzen looked back at this and noted that they could not do anything until there was a formal meeting and all of ninja were accounted for. In all honesty, Hiruzen did not want to be revived, in death, he had found peace, but now all of that was in disarray.

When Sakura was sure that she had healed the first Hokage to the best of her ability, she stepped back to analyse her work, oblivious to Tobirama's gaze upon her. As small as she was, Sakura was not to be underestimated and to do so would surely result in death.

It seemed as though Konoha had kept producing a high quality of ninja's since his death, although from what he saw on the battlefield they were certainly more emotional compared to his generation.

His dark orbs roamed over her form. Her uniform was drenching in blood- none of it hers. There was something memorable, about the girl. Perhaps it was the unusual pink hair, or the emerald eyes; he was not too sure.

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 **There aren't enough sakuraxtobirama stories and if they are its mostly all time-travel, which is good but I wanted to keep a lot of the characters. :)Hope you enjoyed it and feedback will let me know if I should bother continuing and post the next chapter or just scrap the story. Tell me if there's anything you want to see, couples and events, and typo's.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Important!**

 **1) This chapter has a lot of dialogue, but is very important as it sets up the foundation that will enable Sakura and Tobirama to have a relationship.**

 **2) READ CAREFULLY! There are some big numbers in this chapter that continue through the story so make sure you don't get confused**

 **3) In case you are confused as to why they all came back to life - the Impure Resurrection Jutsu reanimated everyone including Madara but when Obito was trying to bring Madara back to life it effected all of the previous Hokage too.**

* * *

When all of the shinobi of the allied nations reached the rendezvous point, it was chaotic but in a good way, with the threat of death no longer looming, there were more smiles. That is until the other Kage saw the revived legends. The only one who appeared to be fine was Gaara, as the red head stared long at the genius who managed to have such an idiot as a son. Perhaps the knuckle head attitude came from his mother's side instead.

Mentioning the new addition to Konoha's ranks was a sure way to create tension so they all just smiled civilly, desperate to return to their own village, help the injured, and do what needed to be done.

Tsunade let out a breath she did not know that she was holding, "Crisis averted."

It was time to return home and to invite peace back into their lives. It was about god damn time too. With a huff, the fierce woman started to bark out orders to get them going. Naruto took this time to walk with his dad as the envoy marched towards home. Honestly, he wanted to say something but the words would not come out. How does one deal with such a situation?

Sensing his unease Minato tried to help, "Naruto. Never in a million years did I think that I'd be able to see you again." His son could only smile; they had a lot to talk about once they got home.

"I missed you too dad. Hey, now that we're going to Konoha you could stay with me. I mean…if you don't mind or anything."

"Of course not, Naruto-kun." Accommodation was not the first thing of Minato's mind right now but he was happy that it was sorted out.

"Heh, we have so much to catch up on!" the younger boy chattered on restlessly about how much the women loved him, while Minato, just smiled and suppressed the urge to cry. This was like a dream to him.

They marched home carrying what little they had. Madara took away many good shinobi, many of which had families at home. But the one thing he couldn't take away was their Will of Fire. The fire that burned brightly even in the darkest of nights. The fire that helped guide lost souls home and back onto the path of light.

The streets were lined with civilians cheering as the heroes walked back into the village, every ninja, no matter how big or small their role was, were made to feel special individually. It was a hero's welcome and the shinobi revelled in it. It wasn't often that their work was appreciated on such a large scale.

Once safely inside, Tsunade set up an emergency meeting to discuss what would happen to the revived Hokage, the rebuilding of Konoha and many other things. In the meeting, there were all of the heads of clans, from Inuzuka to Aburame. Sakura was obliged to be there since her mentor was the Hokage as was Shizune.

They were all situated on a large rectangular table. At the head of the table was Tsunade herself. Then on either side of her, was two of each of the previous Kage. On her left was Hashirama and Tobirama, while Hiruzen and Minato took the right side. From there on were the clan heads and right at the other end, facing Tsunade directly were the two village elders.

"Let the meeting commence. Today we shall discuss the important issues, such as the hospital, the revived Hokage, the rebuilding of Konoha and other important matters. As the leader of this meeting I think it is in all of our best interests to ask how and why you were all able to come back."

Hashirama spoke first in that calm and soothing voice of his, "To be honest, we ourselves are not sure. My brother created it, but we have been dead for a very long time. Anyone could have altered the jutsu during that time, but it is most likely to be a mistake. An error that wasn't noticeable. It was always a very volatile technique, and just the act of reanimating a corpse is a miracle in it's itself, but to actually make them alive again and succeed. Well, there's not much I can say about that."

"I see...more research will have to be done. We need to find all of Kabuto's and Orochimaru's works so that nobody tries to revive someone else." Tsunade clasped her hands in concentration and a frown adorned her face, "I hope this won't cause any trouble though, I don't want the other shinobi nations to see us as overpowered."

"Baa-chan! We just came out of a war; no one wants to fight again! Believe it!"

"Baka! How did you get in here?" Naruto had the decency to look guilty this time, and shrank back into a corner of the room.

Tsunade rubbed her temples in aggravation, "Grab a seat idiot. I guess this involves you too." The blonde smiled in gratitude and shuffle next to his father with unrestrained happiness.

"Right, first and for most, the hospital is overrun with injured and there isn't enough space to keep everybody. Yamato is currently building temporary accommodation but this could literally go on for months, which is time that we do not have. The only way to make things easier is to get the people to be able to heal themselves to a certain degree.

The Aburame clan is in charge of collecting herbs and all things to do with potions. I chose you specifically because some of your insects consume specific herbs that can heal you, I want you to collect these herbs, group and classify them, and allow the hospital to administer it to patients to drink."

Sakura and Shizune, who standing behind Tsunade, took notes of everything that she said so they could be handed out and a report of the meeting could be drafted.

"All of the medics in the Yamanaka clan, Hyūga clan and Nara clan will tend to the Shinobi. While the medics in the Inuzuka clan, Aburame clan and Akimichi clan will tend to the civilians. This will create order and we will be able to sort through the injuries much, much faster. I think the shinobi will heal much quicker so when that's done the medics can switch to the civilians and double the speed of recovery.

Sakura, you have a very important task. Every single Konoha citizen who has an incomplete record, will need to have a check up; this will a update our records completely. It will take time but you need to do it meticulously and precisely. We lost too many good ninja because their records were old. Anything that we don't already have: blood types, allergies, hereditary problems, scars, birthmarks, chakra type, everything. Nothing can be missed. You have a deadline, which is a months' time, I know it sounds crazy but it must be done. You will have 50 other medics working alongside you to get this done on time." Said girl beamed with pride, but kept her composure in front of everyone, this was a difficult and time-consuming task, but Tsunade had chosen her specifically because she believed in her.

"Shizune, I'm appointing you as head medic of the hospital, you're responsible for the hospital finances and research in potions, poisons and technology. I am also putting you in charge of all major surgeries for ANBU.

To get Konoha back on its feet again, people need jobs, houses and schools need to be in place for both civilian and shinobi children.

I have many builders helping but the civilians need to be included too, so we won't need you for this first Hokage. My first thought was too have you just build everything and this could all be over and done with but Konoha needs to recover together, with everyone playing an active role." Hashirama pouted a little at this – who could have thought being overpowered would actually hinder him.

"I want the Nara's to help in organize and plan, ensuring that everybody has a role and contributes. This will not take more than a couple of days to sort out. Minato-sama, I will need you to be in charge every person in Konoha that is under 10. I know it is a big ask and seems mundane, but I will need a draft of schools, activities and academy schedules. They are most at risk of psychological harm so normality is the best thing right now, this should not take more than a week. After that you'll be working together with Naruto at the orphanage and helping those who have no relatives and parents who are still missing in action."

"Tsunade-sama." All eyes turned to Hiruzen as he spoke up. "In death I had found peace, this may come as a shock to you all, but I don't not wish to be alive. When I died, I accepted it as my fate. To this day, I still do… that is why tonight I shall perform Seppuku." There was a collected gasp and a murmur of surprise at this declaration. Nevertheless, nobody could argue with him, it was an honourable way to die.

Tsunade nodded solemnly, she did not want to dwell on this topic. To live, die, live and then die again. It seemed as though the gods above had no mercy. "As you wish. Ahem, we still have matters to discuss, such as Sasuke Uchiha and his punishment, but for now as long as he is on our side, and helping Konoha we can come to a decision later.

Tobirama-sama, your chakra detection skills are unmatched. By working with Sakura as she checks the patients, I want you to memorize each person's chakra nature, so essentially be able to sense everybody in Konoha. This way if someone who does not belong here enters, we will know straight away. Tricky, but I know you will succeed."

Listening attentively to every word, Tobirama noted that since his death, Konoha had only gotten better, and it showed through Tsunade and her attitude. Her ideas were unique and perfectly thought out. Everything he said made sense, as there was a reason behind it that lead to a clear goal.

Despite all of them being there, she did not let anyone question her role as Hokage; her instructions were quick and left no room for debate. The requests were actually demands that were obeyed. The man wondered just how much had changed; one thing he knew was the children were treated much better than during his time. They did not have to kill each other, betray each other or worse.

He could also presume that all ninja, male and female, now had an equal chance to achieve greatness. The example was standing right in front of him. A female Hokage, a female head of hospital. The ninja world wasn't so male dominated anymore and Tobirama liked that. In his opinion, it was easier to respect a female if you honestly believed that she was your equal regardless of rank or status. Well, he didn't really respect the pinked haired girl or that dark haired one as he didn't actually know them, but he did approve. They must have been great in their own right to be standing in their current position.

There was an unexpected pause as Tsunade stopped speaking shortly. "I have news that nobody will like but it must be said. Konoha is on the very edge of bankruptcy. There is no money. Seriously, there is not enough to last until December. It will take us to January if we are lucky. This battle has sucked us dry as with the other nations.

We just came out of a war and nobody wants to fight anytime soon but missions are needed to keep this country afloat. We cannot afford to waste time on D and C rank missions. Therefore, Shikamaru and I did the calculations.

Konoha is made up of around 120,000 citizens, of which there are 13,000 shinobi.

Around 2,500 are Genin. Around 7,000 are Chūnin. Then 3,000 are Jōnin and our ANBU forces are just under 500. The pay grade of a D class mission is between 5 thousand and 50 thousand ryō. C rank is between 30 thousand and 100 thousand ryō. B rank is between 150 and 200 thousand ryō. A rank is around 150 thousand and a million ryō while all S rank mission are a million ryō and more.

To give you an idea of how dire the situation is; every single ANBU will have to do at least 4 S ranked missions, every single Jōnin will have to do 6 A Ranked missions and 12 B ranked missions before January to stop our economy from collapse."

The silence was heavy as each contemplated her words. Although no words were said some their eyes held confusion and even accusation. One of the village elders pursed their lips in disgruntlement but opted to say quiet now so they could scheme later.

"Borrowing is out of the question, as it would make things worse in the long term and I refuse to speed up the promotion process, as that will dilute the quality of our ninja.

Therefore, here is what I have proposed. An attack is very improbable so all ANBU units will be going on S ranked missions perpetually.

Every suitable Jōnin will go on at least 10 B ranked missions every month. They will only be given missions that have a success rate of 60% or more to avoid unnecessary deaths. If this works then we might just make it to December but things will be tight. Which is why all the medics must work hard to heal all of the ninja and get them to fully capacity. Our village depends on it.

The Inuzuka clan and Yamanaka clan and Hyūga clan, it seems unfair but I want practically all members of your clan on missions at all times where possible. Your people will do S-rank, A-rank, B-rank, C-rank and D-rank. Therefore, from Genin to ANBU, I want your people out on the field at all times.

If anyone has any complaints speak now."

"We thank you for your trust in us and our abilities." Hiashi bowed out of respect and was able to see the bigger picture. If the economy collapsed then so would Konoha essentially.

"Well, if that's all then this meeting is over." She stood up without another word and went to drink her sorrows away, most likely.

This month would either make or break them.

Filing out slowly the room was left empty once again. Once outside each member of the meeting went his or her separate ways, except from Sakura who stood there stupidly for a moment. She could not comprehend how the country was broke. Okay, sure, war is costly but Konoha was one of the richest nations ever! Also, war was lucrative. _Lucrative_. this only meant that the funds were spent incorrectly. With a frown and heavy heart, she allowed her feet to carry her home.

Sleep did not come easy to Sakura that night. It would not, until her parents were found, their whereabouts were currently unknown, but she was sure they would be fine. Well, at least she hoped. There was something daunting about sleeping her house all by herself. Her eyes would play tricks on her and see something most past her window. Sakura didn't know what was wrong with her, was it the psychological effects of the war?

Her mind kept drifting to the funeral that would be happening the following week. It was for all the ninja who were KIA; Tsunade had plans to give them posthumous medals of honour. The week after that one would be the funerals of those who were still MIA. Sakura prayed to kami that her parents returned before then.

After hours of tossing and turning, sleep came but too late. It was time to get up and carry out her duty at the hospital. Due to the time limit and scale of the work she got up at 5:45 had a quick shower and was at her destination by ten past. Inside were the 50 other medics waiting for her orders and a very long line of patients.

"Okay, we're on a tight schedule and the only way to complete this on time is by attending to a minimum of 4 patients per hour! That is the least you can see in an hour okay. However, we should all be aiming for seven or eight. Remember we are just updating records so do not do anything that is already up to date, do not waste time!"

They all followed her instructions to the dot, nobody wanted to be reprimanded by the Hokage's apprentice, and they liked Sakura. The task was simple enough, just repetitive and tedious. The was nothing hard about getting a patients file, asking questions and using chakra to inspect health, blood type, and other things. That was not hard, but it was daunting. Konoha was no small nation, and they had to update around 10,000 records. plus, find the time to help the wounded that kept pouring through the gates. It seemed as though the struggle would never end.

As the day wearied on, many of the doctors still showed no sign slowing down, it was now 2pm and they had all been working non-stop. Sakura noted that _if_ they went on that this pace for the next week, then they would finish a day or two earlier than expected. That was a big if. Her eyes flickered to the hospital entrance when she was Tobirama enter with his brother. He always had such a… serious look on his face. Was it stress? His presence made her feel slightly uncomfortable, as he never revealed what he was feeling. His face was the perfect mask of indifference at times.

The eldest of the two brothers spotted her and they advanced in her direction. Steeling her nerves Sakura smiled dutifully trying hard to look make it look realistic, "Hashirama-sama, Tobirama-sama," her bow was polite, "what can I do for you, today?"

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 **Why doesn't Tsunade let Hashirama just build all of the houses?** Well, when the civilians build it actually create's profit because of trade within and outside on Konoha. they need some type of livelihood.

Seppuku - an honourable form of suicide, often done by samurai

A big thank you to - SakuMiChanNoGaara, Lunardragon33, maddiev98, and Komahana

 **Thank you to minekotakashi and Hazel Roses, who's reviews were very constructive in helping to write this chapter and the others. :D**

Tell me if you see any spelling mistakes and typo's so I can fix it. Thank you all.


	3. Chapter 3

Thank you to everyone who has reviewed

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As soon as the utterance escaped her mouth, she wanted to slap herself silly, what a stupid question. They were here to help. Despite her blunder, she kept up the smile and decided to feign ignorance instead, this way she could save face.

"I'm here to carry out the duty that Tsunade gave to me." His reply was short, and straight to the point, but what else was she expecting? He was the complete opposite of his brother in so many ways. It was quite freaky, really.

Standing the same room as The God of Shinobi and the Nidaime Hokage...her knees were doing everything in their power not to quiver. If she were to speak, she was certain her voice would break, so to escape mortification she nodded and went back to work. _Oh yeah_ , it seemed bad mannered but she could not stand around all day…that is what she told herself.

The so-called God of Shinobi watched the lady walk away, "Hey, I think she's one of the few who isn't scared of us. If she is, she certainly doesn't show it." His brother barely glanced his way before walking further into the hospital. Tobirama wasn't a chatty person by nature and he had heard many times by his brother that he could be daunting.

The walls of the institution were painted in a pastel blue colour with white laminated floors, this made it easy to clean spillages however, it left the smell of bleach, and this was probably why Hashirama hated the hospital. In his time, they had buildings that you could be healed in, but nothing on this scale and as efficient. During his reminisce, Hashirama's thoughts glazed over the memory of his late wife, Mito. Being revived was blessing as much as it was a curse. She plagued his thoughts at the most impromptu times and made him desire to be with her once more.

Civilians walked past him completely unaware of his thoughts and the agony that the village founder was going through. Perhaps they would always be blissfully ignorant of the psychological effects of war, death and pain. Pain that every shinobi knew. Death that could be seen on the memorial stone. War that etched itself into the very fibre of their being until they became one with it.

Snapping out of the morbid train of thought, he strolled into the room he saw Sakura enter and looked around with an inquisitive glint in his eyes. Sakura twisted her head slightly at the intruder and felt her insides turn into a type of jelly and mush. "How, can I help you Hashirama-sama." Praising herself for not stuttering, she faced him fully with false confidence.

"Is there anything I can do to help? I've been told that my chakra is 'medicinal'" his laugh was warm and reverberated off the walls. It was the type of laugh that made you want to laugh along, and smile for no reason, hence why the edges of Sakura's lips were tilted upwards despite her reservations. She had come to realize that there was truly no reason so be so guarded around him.

"Our medics have it under control, but it would help us save time if you could create some wooden clones and help file all of the documents away." If he was willing to help, she might as well put him to work on the most audacious tasks.

Hashirama sweat dropped internally, this was not what he had in mind when he offered his services, but he couldn't go back on his word, that wasn't in his nature. Mustering up a large smile he responded enthusiastically, "Whatever you need, Sakura-san." She escorted him to the room where they kept all of the paperwork that had to be processed; the room large but was cluttered with files stacked upon each other and there was scarcely any room to move. Before he could ask any questions she retreated, probably thinking he wanted to change his mind. Six of is wooden clones poofed into existence and did all of the work for him, said man then sat on a nearby chair and relaxed in comfort. This wasn't so bad.

Several hours passed and the chaos in the hospital had begun to wind down, all of the staff were getting hang of things and followed their schedule better than they had previously.

Sakura realized that she had not seen or heard from Tobirama since she last saw him, with this in mind she got up and decided to search for him in the hospital. He could be anywhere. The corridors were bursting with activity so she acknowledged that spotting him would be harder that she initially thought. Pushing chakra around her, she could sense that we was two flights of stair up with someone else.

Walking up so many stairs was tedious but the elevator would take longer… stairs it is then. Once in the corridor she could her him talking with another person, it sounded like Konohamaru. "You don't look _that_ strong. I bet I could beat you, let's spar!"

Tobirama wanted to roll his eyes at the boy. Such bravery, such foolishness. Idly he wondered why the boy wasn't spending time with his grandfather. Hiruzen had decided not to die very late last night. He had only just found out his son's child. How could he leave then? Tobirama thought he made the right decision; to die again would leave too much pain and sorrow behind. Not to mention the young boy in front of him obviously revered his grandfather and saw him as an inspiration. However, the news of Asuma's death had hit Hiruzen like a ton of bricks, no doubt the many was weighed down heavily with regret.

Sakura came out from the shadows and approached Konohamaru with killing intent. His ears turned red due to the force of which she grabbed it with, "Have some respect for your elders, you brat!" the boy just moaned and tried to escape her grasp. This only made her hold on tighter until he apologised profusely.

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry, okay! Ita, ita, let go Sakura-chan!"

When satisfied with the sincerity of his regret, she let go and warned him to go home straight, or next time would be worse. Konohamaru, thoroughly scared for his life, skittered off without another word. This left her alone with Tobirama. He was watching her intently, trying to decipher how quickly her emotions could change. "I came to look for you and see how you were progressing."

"I can sense everyone in the village." Sakura gave him a funny look, how was this possible? Not everyone had been check yet. She voiced her thoughts and waited for his feedback.

"Every citizen of Konoha has been in since this hospital at one point in their life. Whether they were born here, injured on a mission or came for a check-up, they have all been here at least once. Chakra leaves traces that fades over time but never truly leaves; therefore I can sense it, even in minuscule amounts."

That made sense, he had probably walked into every room, past every corridor and anywhere else to detect all the chakra, he could. It truly was amazing, but made Sakura feel safe and intruded at the same time. Safe because if she ever went missing she could always be found, and intruded because there was nowhere to hide.

"That's amazing, when will you tell Tsunade-sama?"

"First thing tomorrow morning." Standing this close to him, Sakura now had to proper chance to look him over. He was no longer wearing his heavy traditional armour, but a standard Jōnin vest and black pants to match. He almost looked casual. _Almost_. Upon close analysis, she could see that although his hair was indeed white, there were hues of pale blue depending on the angle. Not wanted to seem like some type of stalker she cleared her throat and suggested that they go and find his brother. Tobirama accepted this suggestion and walked with her to where she had last seen him.

They room the entered was filled with clones of his brother moving around paper and storing it, while the real one appeared to be taking a nap. Tobirama tusked inwardly and moved to wake him up with a flick to his ears. The older brother opened his eyes reluctantly and stood with a yawn.

The place was in much better condition and Sakura could not deny that she was impressed. Everything was allocated to the correct place and he had even managed to order them in last name and separate the shinobi from citizens. He wasn't hailed as a legend for no reason. "I'm leaving now, my clones will stay behind to finish the work, goodbye Sakura-san." He was gone in the blink of an eye, leaving the room as though he had never entered it.

Sakura glanced at her watch to inspect the time, and decided that it was time to go home. She would back again tomorrow to check up on more patients. "I'm leaving too, Tobirama-sama." What kind of man would he be if he let a woman walk home, unaccompanied alone at night?

"I shall walk you home."

"Oh, that's not necessary; I can take care of myself." The look he gave her showed that there was no point arguing with him. Sometimes Sakura forgot that things had changed since he was alive. He probably still had a chauvinistic mind-set and felt as though it was his duty to protect every fair maiden in need. The desire to point this out to him took over, as he needed to understand that things were not the same as before.

"You know a lot has changed. Women and men are seen as equals."

"I am aware of that, if things were still the same the current Hokage would be a man."

"It's not as obvious as that. The equality runs much, much deeper than that. Previously, there were 'seduction' missions correct? Where it was thought that the only way a woman could get information out of a guy, was to sleep with him. However, they don't exist any more. Tsunade scrapped them. In fact, if you have to sleep with the target it shows that you are not in control."

If he was surprised, he certainly didn't show it, his face was stoic as usual and the only sign of acknowledgement was the slight tilt of his head. "That may be the case, but you'd do well to remember that I'm not from this time."

She wasn't sure if was a just a statement or actually a threat…it definitely sounded like one. Feeling as though she had given him the wrong impression she tried to backtrack and express herself more accurately, "what I'm trying to say is that it's thoughtful that you want to walk me home, but if you're doing it because you think I need protecting then you wrong, as that isn't the case. But if you insist, let's go."

Outside the hospital, the air was brisk and people were retreating into their homes. They walked down the path to Sakura's home in silence for most of the journey, until she was fed up of the lack of conversation. "So, how are you getting used to being alive again."

"I have no objection towards it. It's not ideal, tying to re-adjust but it shows how much development has been done. Which is good."

"Why are you always so… stoic? If you don't mind me asking, it's just that you and brother a complete opposites."

"We grew up in the warring states era, where children died needlessly. Originally, there was four of us, Hashirama, Itama, Kawarama and I. The other two died before they were ten. During my time children, even as young as four were sent out into the battlefield. If you could fight, you were not a child, but a full-fledged shinobi. That was how things were. Hashirama wears his heart on sleeve because he believes that by showing our guts to each other there can be peace. I do not do this because I have seen war. _Real war_. It's nothing like the one we just had. Real war is vicious. People only think for themselves and a comrade's life means nothing. The fight with Madara lasted for about a fortnight. The one I lived through lasted over twenty years."

Sakura's eyes were wide, with disbelief and a part of her felt sorry for him. It made her feel like less of a ninja because she didn't even know half of what tragedy was.

Sasuke watched his entire clan be massacred, vowed to kill his brother, achieved this only to find out that he was good all along.

Naruto lost his parents the day he was born and grew up in a village that despised his existence, even though we was the one who saved them.

Kakashi lost every single one of his team-mates, only to find out that one was still alive, but was actually evil and tried to kill him, and enslave the world.

Guilt resided in her because she had totally misjudged him. At first she thought Tobirama was merely indifferent to the world around him and didn't really care. Only now did she realize that he always had his guard up and was constantly cautious of the world around him.

They reached her house and stood outside, while she fiddled with her fingers a little bit. Tobirama was about to turn away when her voice called out to him.

"Would you like to come in, and have some tea?"

* * *

Things are starting to happen between them. :)

If you see any spelling mistakes or something doesn't make sense, let me know, thanks.


	4. Chapter 4

New chapter, tell me what you think. :)

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"The offer would sound kind, or even considerate, if I didn't think you were doing it out of pity." Sakura gaped soundlessly as she tried to think of what to say. Sure, she felt bad about his experiences but she knew how proud ninja's were and she knew they didn't go out looking for sympathy. She'd learnt first-hand, through Kakashi and Sasuke, how too much emotion could backfire terribly

"What? No! No! It was just my way of saying thank you for walking me home… not throw you a pity party." Her arms that were lifted slowly came back down to her sides, while she hoped that her response was enough to keep him from harbouring any negative feelings towards her.

"I didn't mean to jump to conclusions." His head bowed a little to represent his apology, and she assumed that he had accepted her invitation. She opened the door, and stepped aside to let him in, which he did. Her home was large, and spacious as they was enough room for both of them to walk alongside each other in the corridor, comfortably. She led him past a few rooms until they entered the chashitsu. It was small but homely and in the middle of the room was an elevated mahogany table with four cushions on either side. The decoration of the room was floral with Sakura petals adorning the walls and a small bonsai pine in the corner.

They took their shoes off at the door and Tobirama was led to one of the soft cushions, to which he sat, legs crossed. Sakura left and came back with a tray of different tea's and a wooden cup for each of them. She set the tray down to the side of the table and sat opposite of Tobirama, so she could face him directly. Her legs were folded beneath her in a traditional well-mannered manner. Growing up her mother stressed the importance of knowing ones heritage, and where cultural values stemmed from.

"Would you like Green tea, Jasmine tea or Kocha tea?" She was the perfect host.

Tobirama was a little surprised, he thought that such customs had faded a while back ago, yet here he was on a mat, in a chashitsu, doing everything traditionally. It was like a flashback to his younger days. To his left, he could see her garden, and the little pond that was in the centre surrounded by Sakura blossoms.

"Jasmine tea, if you please." His voice was different to his brother. Hashirama's voice was calming and even enthusiastic at times; however, Tobirama's deep voice always had an underlying tone of seriousness. Even in the most casual of situations.

Pouring the contents into a larger pot then into his cup, Sakura then picked out green tea for herself and slowly sipped the hot beverage. It was gold to her taste buds.

"You live here alone?"

"For the time being. My parents are MIA right now."

"You believe they'll be back." It was a statement instead of a question but Sakura answered it anyway to convince him her sincerity wasn't denial.

"Yes. They're alive, I can feel it."

Tobirama chose not to comment further. He could still remember, vividly, the day they heard about the death of Itama. It was a shock and completely unexpected, and he too, presumed his brother was still alive. They all did. Memories like that only fuelled his anger at the way society was constructed at the time and Tobirama felt a deep resentment to the era in which he was born.

The conversation started slowly at first but then eventually drifted back to what they were speaking about previously on the topic of equality.

"So how come many of the teams still have a 2:1 ratio."

"There's still more male shinobi in comparison to females. The ninjas from a civilian background make up around 30 percent of the entire force. Civilian families don't usually support their daughters in such a career because of the killing and high risk of death it involves. So out of that 30 percent, ninety percent are men."

The white haired man nodded thoughtfully, absorbing the information like a sponge. The more he knew, the more he would be able to help.

"Is there anything else that you I should know?" Sakura racked her brain for knowledge; Konoha was constantly evolving, so it was easy to miss things.

"Well it depends on what you want to know. Social attitudes, cultural views, there's loads."

"Tell me about social attitudes."

"Well, umm, the only thing major that I can think of is that people are more relaxed about sex before marriage. I mean, before when everything was traditional they had virginity ceremonies and things like that but society has moved on from that. It's not that big of a deal anymore."

He appeared to be a little put off at the prospect of people having sex simply because they wanted to. There was a tiny crease in between his brows and his eyes were narrowed distastefully.

"In my time, we had the occasional famous courtesan but a majority were yūjo's. Reputation was very important for women. If fact, back then if a woman were to ask me inside for tea, as you did, it would be seen as an invite for pleasure. Her reputation would be ruined and her family would have disowned her."

"What? All that, just for tea?"

"To be alone with a man, meant that you would accept whatever advances he made towards you. Keep in mind that women didn't go into battle because of their physical inferiority. Therefore, men ruled and were obeyed. The common thought was that they knew best. So if a man wanted to sleep with you, denying him that right would be seen as disrespectful."

"Because men know best." Sakura finished. She had only heard snippets of what life was like before, as very few people knew. There were detailed stories about wars and adventures, but the common thought was that women played minor roles in society. It was a shame that this turned out to be true however, history was written by the winners. In this case, the winners were always men. History was their version of events, with women omitted from it completely.

"Did you ever feel as if it was wrong? I mean, did you agree with the way women treated?"

"Yes. We accepted it just as we accepted war." Tobirama looked at her unblinkingly; perhaps she thought he would say he was fierce advocate of women's rights. If so, she was in for a disappointment. The inner feminist in Sakura raged, but she could see his point clearly.

They sipped their tea in silence, each tending to their own thoughts.

"I can't help but wonder though. We all know that there are many less than honourable men in this world, who use rape as a form of power. Does that not discourage you or any other woman?"

"Kunoichi are trained to handle a wide range of scenario's that involve their gender being used against them. We are taught that rape is just another form of interrogation, which it is. Used by the enemy to break your resolve, though self-worth. The idea of rape shouldn't be a deterrent. Usually, we know when someone has been in a battle because we can see it. We can see scars, missing limbs and mutilations. And, I think that's what makes rape so hard for people to understand. It's hard to heal something that you can't see. You cannot operate on trauma. You cannot X-ray depression, and you cannot say sorry to a person whose committed suicide because of shame and social stigma. For the women who carry on as shinobi, rape isn't a deterrent, because the entire point of most missions is to overpower by any means necessary. Whether by jutsu or intelligence."

"Doesn't this cause a problem, if a child is conceived?"

"Both men and women have tablets that is mandatory to take before a mission. They temporarily stop ovulation and all sperm is blank."

"Why must men take it?"

"Equality. Also, men can be raped too." The corners of her lips twitched upwards slightly at his expression. It seemed as though he was still getting used to the idea of equal opportunities on all fronts.

She poured more tea for both of them and discussed how it was her father, who had come up with the idea for the garden when she was born. The Sakura trees grew as she grew, and were meant to be a symbol of her life. Her mother loved history and would read or reference things from the past when Sakura was little. They were Chūnin and usually did C and low B rank missions, this was mainly when Sakura was a child and they always wanted to make sure at least one of them would be alive and there for her, if something were to happen to the other.

"When I was young they let me have whatever I wanted. It was good in the short term, but long term wise in terms of my ninja skills, it was terrible. I failed the Chūnin exam and had to repeat them. I guess they didn't really see the importance of being ninja, but they were well intentioned. If it wasn't for them, it would have taken longer to find my Will of Fire." Sakura's eyes were unseeing as they stared into her green tea.

"What is your Will of Fire?" his curiosity was piqued and he was interested to see what spurred her on as shinobi.

"Growing up, no one believed in my abilities. Even I didn't. The idea was, I would maybe become a Chūnin and do some mundane tasks for a couple of years before retiring, marrying and having children. Nevertheless, Tsunade-sama saw something in me that I didn't know was there. She saw potential that was overlooked or dismissed. She saw a young girl desperate to catch up to her teammates. Despite how far back I was compared to the rest, she took me under her wing because she had faith in me. My Will of Fire is to protect those who cannot protect themselves, so that one day, they too, may find someone who sets them on the path of greatness."

Previously, Tobirama thought that she was a bit naïve, but repeatedly she had proved him wrong with her knowledge. The Will of Fire was something dear to him and his brother. It was this Will that allowed Konoha to be built and the same Will that had enabled him to live through many battles.

He allowed the corners of his lips rise to an approving smile and his face softened slightly showing that his guard was lowered just a little bit. Her company was pleasant and she did not have any ulterior motives against him, so for now he would trust her and enjoy her company.

From their seating position, they could see the horizon from her garden and the colours of the even sky began to merge into different reds, oranges and yellows. The sky showed birds in huge masses flocking in different directions, moving towards home, where ever that may be.

"May your Will live on."

Sakura wasn't too sure, but she knew things had changed between them for the better. He didn't seem as closed off as he was before and even smiled at her. When their tea was finished and the day was ending they finally stood up, and Sakura escorted him to the door to bid him farewell and thank him for staying. Stepping out into the patio with him, her eyes struggled to make out his features due to the darkness that enshrouded them both.

"Thank you for the tea, Sakura-san." Tobirama wasn't sure, but it seemed as though the distance between them had closed and Sakura was leaning in. she was close. He thought his eyes were playing tricks on him. It was dark after all.

Close enough to kiss. All he would have to do is inch forward just a _little_ bit more.

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 **Chashitsu - traditional Japanese tea room**

 **Yūjo - Harlot, Prostitute**

Hi, guys tell me what you thought about this chapter by reviewing and let me know of my typo's and things you might like to see in the story. :)


	5. Chapter 5

Of course he wouldn't, and for plenty of explanations. The first being he just wasn't that type of guy, there was a reason he never got married and settled down. For Tobirama to get into a relationship, it was a sign of trust and dedication. He liked to believe that he would be faithful, and he'd expect his partner to show him the same level of commitment, not because they were obliged to because of social issues, but because they _wanted_ to. In his previous life the women doted on their husbands every need and remained in their pitiful marriages because it was expected of them. While their husbands frolicked with the maid or whichever woman caught their eye that month.

He wanted a woman that would challenge him intellectually. It was pretty had to find in his days since a woman's role was primarily in the home. With a small smile he stepped back, bid Sakura goodnight and made his way to the place him and his brother were sharing. The place was modest but large enough for both of them to live without feeling squashed together. Stepping through the door of his residence Tobirama ran a hand through his hair and sighed tiredly. He was still coming to terms with being alive but he wondered how his brother was handling his new relationship status as single…or widowed. The definitions were still complicated. Walking further in to the abode he noticed Hashirama sitting on the couch with a cup of tea in his hands.

"Were you waiting for my return?"

"Yes, brother." Hashirama felt protective of his younger sibling, it had always been that way ever since the other brothers passed away. They only had each other in the grand scheme of things.

"I was with Haruno-san."

His older brother's eyebrows wiggled mischievously as his dirty thoughts manifested themselves onto his face. "Ehh, what was that?"

Tobirama rolled his eyes as his brother's antics, "We just had tea." Then he recalled what had happened and what they had discussed. Hashirama listened patiently before bidding his counterpart a goodnight and went to sleep. He was certain that his day was more exciting, he got to catch up with his granddaughter, Tsunade. They chatted away about what had been happening as Hashirama was sad to hear about the loss in her life. He was intrigued as to how she got the title of Hokage, and the story was very amusing. His eyes glossed over as he remembered the day Madara and he spoke of building a nation together.

Minato had spent the day organizing accommodation for the children who no longer had homes and parents. The situation was bleak due to the housing crisis so they either had to live with relatives or strangers with spare rooms. The orphanages were full to the brim. All of this was temporary of course but he still felt terrible nonetheless. The hopeless children looked to him for direction. He could only image how Naruto coped when he and Kushina died. Speaking of Naruto, he was the hero of the village so all of the kids gathered round and listened when he told the story of how he defeated Pein and was actively encouraging the kids to eat ramen as it " _strengthened bones_."

Minato felt as though this was his second chance at being a father. They could actually do stuff, that other fathers did with their son, and even though he was about 17 years too late, he was just grateful for the opportunity bestowed upon him. When they went home that night, he cooked some rice balls and ate them with his son. Naruto had paused stuffing his face and promptly began to cry, this caught Minato by surprise and he tried to console his son.

"I guess you could say this is our first family diner, huh?" Naruto sniffed and wiped his nose with his sleeve before smiling and returning his attention to his food.

"Yeah. I guess you could."

The days continued without a hitch as life was beginning to take on the shape of normality. Every now and then, Sakura would bump into Tobirama and invite him for tea, which he always accepted. He was more relaxed around her and wasn't as blunt to her questions anymore. Hashirama started to join them and they would discuss all sorts of things from culture to generational behaviour changes. The village had also grown accustomed to the presence of the powerful ninja and many claimed that it made them feel safer in the village.

Konoha slept peacefully at night, unaware of what was to come and how much could be accomplished if one was either desperate enough or sought retribution. Like Uchiha Sasuke. The young man was currently sneaking out of Konoha with his blonde best friend in tow.

"This is stupid! If Tsunade baa-chan find us... finds _you,_ its solitary confinement for at least a year!" Naruto hissed at Sasuke. He had an idea of what the other was planning but was too scared to ask in case it was true.

"Just shut-up and trust me. This is my chance." Naruto hushed and followed Sasuke to the outskirts of Konoha until they reached what looked like a rundown cottage that burnt in a fire. Walking inside Sasuke opened a trap door that led to an underground base. Naruto glanced at him warily before following and keeping his patience. They arrived at a large room that had various papers littered on the floor.

To the corner Naruto noticed two unconscious bodies, has face paled when he realized who they were. They were bound tightly and gagged.

"What the _fuck_ did you do teme!? You kidnapped two of the elders! Why?!"

"They were Danzo's ex-teammates. They pushed for the execution of the Uchiha clan, it only made sense that their souls would help bring back some of the people they helped in killing. Don't look so shocked, you probably knew I was planning something like this. Being a previous student of Orochimaru I know where he kept his most secret studies."

"You're going to bring back your family… aren't you."

"Yes. You don't get to look at me like that, Naruto. You got your dad back, why is it so back if I want mine as well?"

"You already know what you want…so why am I here?"

"…Because I don't want to do this alone…dobe."

Naruto sighed and nodded reluctantly, but the thought of killing the elders weighed on him. "Ne Sasuke-teme, they're _old."_ He said it as though there was some unwritten rule on why it was forbidden to kill old people.

"They'll die soon anyway." That was the blunt answer he received. "Listen up, I don't expect you to do anything, it's just… don't… I can't be alone when I see them again."

The blonde nodded, understanding where his best friend was coming from. "Let's get started then."

"I'm using Koharu, to resurrect my father and Homura for my mother. I can't bring Itachi back yet… I don't have any more sacrifices. I had my Sharingan activated when Obito performed the hand seals, and I know where to direct my chakra. Bring Koharu to the centre of the room, in that circle there, and I'll get my dad's body. Alright, stand back." Naruto did as he was told and allow Sasuke to do his part.

The Uchiha took a deep breath in and counted to ten in his head. He placed his hand together and channelled chakra through his entire system, before doing the signs. Tiger. Snake. Dog. Dragon. He clapped his hands. The hard part was keeping his chakra flow steady like Obito had and the harder part was surging the chakra through his hands. Once again like Obito had, it was probably this that messed up the resurrection and revived more people than it was meant to.

The old man twitched wretchedly as his soul was sucked out of him and the energy in it was put into the corpse of Fugaku Uchiha. Said man was beginning to have his body restored and within a few moments he stood before them, confused as hell.

"…Sasuke…?" his son looked as at him apprehensively before crushing him in an embrace. Naruto watched silently as Sasuke explained what had happened and what was going to happen.

"I'm bringing back mom now. Itachi will have to wait a while. You guys can't leave this place until I come and get you. Konoha isn't stable enough, yet." Fugaku nodded, obviously still dazed, before his eyes shifted to a corner the room and spotted Naruto.

"Is that Namikaze's son? Wow…."

Sasuke had a warm feeling in his chest. Since the massacre all he felt was hatred and the future was bleak, however it seemed as though fate was now on his side and things could actually get better for him. All he had to do now was bring back his brother. Looking at the body of the elder on the floor, he didn't feel at fault or any sort of repentance. His indifference towards what was happening seemed warranted in his mind. After all, this was justice. _Uchiha style._

* * *

It was around two in the afternoon and the weather was windy and dry. All signs that winter was fast approaching. And it didn't look as though there would be any snow this year. Sakura was currently checking the numbers on how many more files had to be update and was pleased to see that they were about 80% into the workload. She was impressed. They had only been working for two weeks. Well, honestly if it wasn't for Hashirama sorting out the files she was pretty sure they would have been stuck there for a few weeks before they were completed so she made a mental note to thank him later.

If they all kept working at this rate then at the end of the week they would be finished and then they could help out with the healing. Healing was _way_ more fun than the paper work. Looking up from her workspace she saw Naruto and Sasuke enter through the window. Naruto was normal, but Sasuke? That was strange.

"We need your help Sakura-chan." Naruto whispered while Sasuke made sure the door was locked and no one could overhear their conversation.

 _Alright_ , now she was worried. "What?"

The two boys looked at each other for a moment before confiding in her. Sakura couldn't really describe how she felt, shock was good word so she went with that.

"I need you to help check Itachi's eyes and lungs…he's dying." She stared straight ahead, unblinking. Sasuke stepped forward and put her hands in this, breaking her out of her daydream.

"I know I haven't been the nicest to you," Naruto snorted, "but I'm just asking for this one thing. All I've ever wanted is to have my family back. You wouldn't take that from me would you?" he was trying to guilt trip her and it was working.

"Sasuke, you don't know what you're asking! And how hasn't anyone noticed that the elders are gone?! Tsunade has probably got ANBU looking and when _they_ don't find anything she'll know that it was an inside job! You roped Naruto into this too! If anyone thinks he's guilty of anything, you've just snatched away his chance of being Hokage, kami, you're so _selfish._ The only person you care about is yourself." Her eyes were ablaze with anger, she was sick and tired of being manipulated by Sasuke.

"You know those two elders were Tobirama-sama's students, right?" Naruto's eyes went wide like saucers. "They go missing and all of a sudden your family is un-massacred. I don't even want to know who you used to bring back Itachi. You killed Konoha citizens, you've just signed your death warrant, Uchiha."

He always claimed he had destroyed his bonds with Naruto, knowing that it would crush the blonde, yet when he wanted something he used that bond to rope Naruto in and drag him down too. "Get out of my office. Both of you, _out_."

Naruto looked nervously at both of them and made his way to the window before jumping out, Sasuke, on the other hand, lingered for a while. "We're meeting at one in the morning at the memorial stone. Naruto and I will wait for you in case you change your mind." _In one ear, out the other._

Then he was gone and she was stuck with what he had revealed to her. _Damn Uchiha's_. She was starting to see why Tobirama didn't necessarily like them.

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 **IMPORTANT NOTICE: I've gone back to previous chapters and changed some of the information given, I recommend re-reading chapter two and three.**

 **Thank you to everyone who reviewed, favorited and followed! I really appreciate it.**

 **If you have any suggestions or characters that you'd like to see let me know so that I might be able to fit it in.**


	6. Chapter 6

Yayyy, new chapter! Enjoy

* * *

For the rest of that day Sakura had pondered over Sasuke's words and regardless of her anger towards him, she could reluctantly see where he was coming from. Sighing softly and rubbing her temples and began to pack some of her medical supplies in a pouch and headed to the memorial stone. The walk was quiet, as expected due to the late hour, but her heart was racing and her mind kept telling her to go home and forget all about it. _This isn't going to end well_.

At the memorial stone Naruto and Sasuke were already there waiting for her, as if they knew she would change her mind. "I'm not doing this for you Sasuke. I'm doing it because I think your family deserves a second chance… especially Itachi." After Naruto pulled her into a tight hug, they made their way to the outskirts of Konoha, making sure they avoided the patrols and kept to the shadows. Sasuke led the way to the hide out, and Sakura kept her eyes on his form. His shoulders were hunched in either tension or anticipation – she wasn't sure. There was something different about him though, for example his eyes held a light that wasn't there before, and his jaw was more relaxed than before. He didn't seem to radiate an aura of anger anymore, thus making him more approachable.

* * *

They arrived at the abandoned cottage and stopped momentarily. Sasuke eyed her before speaking, "Thank you." His female teammate cast her eyes down before giving him a slight smile, while she didn't agree with what they were doing, she knew how much this meant to him. They all entered together. The tunnel was dimly lit but she could hear coughing in the distance and could guess it was Itachi. The Uchiha beside her sped up his pace, obviously desperate to reach his older sibling. Upon entering the room Sasuke came to his brother's aid and rubbed his back reassuringly.

Naruto entered the room also, but Sakura hung back and stood near the entrance. Mikoto and Fugaku were surrounding Itachi, trying their best to bring him comfort. Never did she think that she would see Sasuke's family. The anger that she felt towards her teammate melted away slightly at the image before her. Squaring her shoulder she walked forward and introduced herself.

"I'm Sakura Haruno, I'll do my best to heal you Itachi-san." The older man smiled at her while his parents gave her looks of gratitude. Sasuke resembled something of a giddy child and shuffled back to give her space to work on his brother, weeks of planning had him this way. In his mind, the Uchiha would be restored to their former glory.

Sasuke shoved his hands in his pockets and stared intently as Sakura while she worked, he was certain that Itachi would get better, and he was certain that he wouldn't get in trouble for killing the two elders. If the public were to find out that, the massacre was ordered by one of their most revered Hokage's. _They might even make Itachi Hokage…_

He was snapped out of his thoughts when he felt his mother's gaze on him. Her smile was light, the edges of her lips barely curved upwards, but he still felt it anyway. The warm feeling etched its way into his heart before settling down comfortably. It was a feeling he could get used to.

Half an hour passed before Sakura was finished with her healing. "Take a deep breath for me."

Doing so, Itachi found that he could do so without coughing as before. His airways were cleared; the suffocating feeling had vanished completely. His dark eyes thanked her silently before his legs allowed him to stand. Sakura copied his movements and stood alongside him. _One problem down, another one to go. They need to know what they're getting into…_

"Thank you, for saving my son." Approval shone with Fugaku's eyes, he was indebted to her. Next to him, Mikoto smiled pleasantly.

"It's my job as a medic; however there are some important things that need to be discussed." They waited silently for her to continue.

"I'm sure you're all aware, the impure resurrection technique requires human sacrifices", she turned her gaze towards Sasuke's parents, "for your son to revive you he killed Konoha citizens, more specifically he killed the two elders. I'm sure you're already aware of the events which caused the revival of the previous Hokage, so I'm also sure that you know the two elders were the previous students of Tobirama-sama."

The stillness was heavy as each mulled over her words, Sasuke in particular was glaring hard at her feet. "I don't doubt that the rest of the council will pardon you Itachi-san, or your parents for that matter. However, Sasuke, the only reason they allowed you into Konoha and didn't kill you on the spot was because you changed sides during the war, so many overlooked your previous crimes. I doubt that will be the case now."

"This is _justice_. I won't apologize for taking back what was stolen from me." His eyes bore into her soul, "the elders and Danzō were responsible for the Uchiha massacre. _Not_ Itachi." He walked forward until he was directly in front of her, "I'll kill anyone who tries to take them, _again_."

The threat was clear and she didn't need to ask what he was implying, Naruto stood awkwardly to the side not knowing what to do as he watched Sakura pick up her medic supplies before swiftly leaving. She was done. From here, they were on their own and Sakura would no longer be helping. The trip back home was quicker due to her fast pace, she couldn't be around Sasuke any longer.

 _That's not how you speak to someone, who just saved your brother's life!_ With her mood considerably sour, the sight of her house was comforting to see. Upon entering, she could sense Naruto's chakra behind her, turning around to face him; her expression was flat and tired.

"Here to convince me why Sasuke's right?" green eyes stared him down in a sort of challenge she knew she would win.

"Sakura-chan, you know Sasuke would never _actually_ hurt you, he's just defensive of his family."

"Why are you always protecting him Naruto? Don't you realize that he's just using you?"

"Sasuke…is family to me. We both grew up lonely, we understand each other, don't you get it Sakura-chan? I can't just turn my back on him, I've gotta be there to support him."

"When was he ever there to support you, huh? When all of this goes wrong, and believe me, it _will_ , he's gunna drag you down with him. You need to understand Naruto… Sasuke hinders your dream to be Hokage. He knows what lengths you'd go to, in order to protect your precious people…and he's used that against you. He made you into an accomplice for his crime…"

"…aren't you meant to be in love with him… or something?" Naruto's gaze shifted around awkwardly, he was failing to see reason with what Sakura had said.

"I stopped loving him when he tried to kill you. You may not see where I'm going with this but… what's your dad gunna say if he finds out? You stood back and allowed Sasuke to kill the elders, meaning you didn't fight for Konoha. Years ago you swore to me that you'd stop Sasuke from his path of revenge… but you let him finish it, Naruto."

He stared at her hard, before grabbing her shoulders and pulling her dangerously close, and from this position, she could get a good look of the hurt that resided within his eyes. "You really feel that way?" the pitch of his voice had dropped as he whispered lowly. Not trusting herself to speak, Sakura merely nodded without breaking eye contact. After what felt like minutes, her blonde companion stepped back with an aggrieved expression in his eyes.

"You really think my dad would be disappointed?"

"We all make mistakes Naruto…but it's never too late to fix them. I'm sure he'll be shocked, but you could never disappoint him, or anyone for that matter. Promise me that you won't blindly follow Sasuke again, okay? I know you share a bond and I'd never try to break that, but stop thinking that what he does is never his fault. We all make decision that we ourselves are accountable for."

Sakura led him into her home, and allowed him to lay on her bed after he took his shoes and ninja kit off. He was tired and confused, the expression was written all over his face and his hands were tightly balled. Sakura lay alongside him, "I want you to tell me everything, Naruto."

"I didn't kill anyone… he told me what he was doing because he couldn't be alone. He needed support. I know how he felt when he got his mom and dad back. It's the same way I felt when I saw my dad revived on the battlefield. It's like… a part of you is restored, you know? Well, you have parents Sakura-chan, so I guess you don't _really_ know."

Indeed she didn't. A few days ago she had received a letter informing her that her parents were receiving medical treatment in waterfall and didn't return with the rest of Konoha because they had stayed behind to help the smaller nations retrieve their dead. It was honourable, they put others before themselves. That's what Tobirama had said. She felt guilty at the fact that she wanted them home with her but had to agree with him.

"My dad's there at the beginning of the day, and he's there at the end. Someone to watch _my_ back. How could I stop Sasuke from feeling that? Something that was ripped from him, how could I deny him his heart's desire? Sakura-chan, I don't know what you have against him… but he needs you."

"That's not what it sounded like when he threated to kill me about an hour ago." She scoffed.

"Team seven needs each other more than ever. We can't split, not at a time like this, you know that," his admonishment was soft," Kakashi-sensei is… unresponsive, Sai is isolating himself and Yamato is killing himself with mission. We need to stick together…"

"Yeah... you're right"

"So, you think you can tell me when you started hating him?"

"I've never… _hated_ him per say… but I just got really angry when he tried to kill you…and you were the only one really fighting to get him back. He just seemed so ungrateful, you know?"

Naruto's eyes were heavy with fatigue as he nodded before closing his eyes completely. Sakura watched him for a few moments, and when certain that he was asleep she got out of the bed and made her way to the hospital.

At the late hour the place was mostly empty, so without any hassle Sakura strolled into one of the patient rooms. Eyes closed peacefully and mask off, lay Kakashi on the hospital bed. She had neglected seeing him for a few days and the remorse was catching up to her. Pulling on of the chair closer she folded her arms over each other and leant on his bed with her face buried within.

After waking up from when he had knocked in out, Kakashi had yet to say a word. His eyes were blank and held no life in them. When Minato had come to visit all Kakashi had done was stare despondently at the ceiling above him. It was strange seeing one of Konoha's strongest shinobi in such a defenceless state, but nothing could be done. It was up to him to fight his inner demons and pull himself out of the depression.

By the time Sakura puller her head out of her arms, the sun the peeking through the blinds and Kakashi was once again looking up. Sakura sighed softly before placing a kiss on his cheek and leaving.

* * *

Back at her home, she was greeted with silence. Naruto had probably left a couple hours after her, in favour of being home with his dad. Taking in her surroundings and the emptiness of the house, Sakura couldn't help but feeling just a tiny bit lonely, and in the moment she could understand Sasuke's actions. Sighing inaudibly, Sakura when to shower and get dressed for work. Her outfit was the red version of what Ino wore, it had been a present for her birthday. Admittedly it was a little tight now, signifying that the pinkette had gained some weight, but she quickly dismissed this; Ino would call her a fatty if she ever brought this up to her.

When the sun was high in the sky, Sakura decided it was time for a break, she had managed to do half of the paper work on her desk and took a moment to lean back on her chair, with her neck stretched high. After a moments contemplation she decided to give Hashirama a visit. He had told her that she was invited anytime.

Her head was in the clouds as she made her way to his home, this area of Konoha was part of the heritage. Most of the buildings had been destroyed but the ones that managed to survive had been there since the nation had been established. Upon spotting his home at the end of the street, Sakura sped up and knocked three times before the door was answered.

Tobirama looked at her curiously before stepping aside, Hashirama had mentioned that he had invited her over. Yet his older brother wasn't home. "Sakura-san," he greeted her politely, "my brother isn't home at the moment, but come in."

Although the design outside of the home was traditional, the inside had been modernized to stop it from falling apart. He led her to the centre room and went to get some tea from the kitchen and placed the tray on the table. It reminded him of when he was in her house, only this time they set next to each other, inside of opposite the other.

"Please excuse my brother for not being home, at times he can be forgetful." Sakura waved her hand politely.

"There's nothing to apologize for, it's not a big deal. However… you seem tense. Anything the matter?" Tobirama wasn't surprised that she had picked up on that, she seemed to be very analytical.

"Seeing as everyone will know before the day is up, my previous students; the two elders, have been missing for a while now."

Sakura tensed slightly and her insides ran cold when he's red bore into her soul. It was almost as if he knew she was hiding something. "Well umm, I'm sure they'll be found."

"Dead or alive?" his question threw her off guard and she diverted her gaze away before disclosing that she didn't know the answer to that.

 _Coming here was a bad idea._

 ** _Oh, thank you for that observation. You shouldn't have tensed in the first place, that's when he knew something was up. You don't even look shocked, for goodness sake. Alright, time to get out of here. Now._**

Not needing anymore warning from her inner, Sakura made to stand from the table, "Thank you for this but I have to return to my duties." Tobirama could tell when someone was running. He was a good hunter, and prey _always_ ran when they were scared. Before she could move his hand grabbed her upper arm as he stood and locked her in place.

"Why are you running, Sakura." Schooling her expression Sakura ran through many scenarios in her head. Was it better to lie, fight or tell the truth? The latter was immediately crossed from her mind, betraying team seven wasn't an option.

"I'm trying to come to terms with what you just told me. I think I need to be alone." As she spoke, he had her cornered into the wall. He was also able to see right through her lie. Her breathing was shallower, and her shoulders were squeezed inwards as if she was getting ready to fight.

Lowing in his voice he whispered slowly, "You aren't lying to me, are you, Sakura?" Maybe it was the deepness in his voice, or the way he said her name, but either way it sent a shiver down her spine and left a tingling feeling on her skin.

 ** _I told you to get away, not get turned on. Urgh._**

 _Shut up inner! I'm backed into a corner, help me figure this out. If not then be quiet._

 ** _Fight or flight outer. Flight didn't work, so there's only one option left._**

 _Fight._

Spinning on her heel, Sakura was able to use momentum and his surprise to her advantage as she pinned him to the floor with the help of her super strength and straddled him. His hands were pinned above his head as he stared ominously at her.

"Did you have any part in the kidnap of the elders?" his voice was distant and cold.

"No." she replied with a firm voice, and essentially it was the truth. All she did was heal Itachi.

At her words he seemed to relax a little more, causing Sakura to realize that she never had any power during their little skirmish, he was just trying to find out whether she was part of the crime. It seemed as though he had _let_ her pin him down. Infinitely grateful to Kami that she hadn't reveal Sasuke's plans Sakura released his hands. He would no doubt force her into explaining the rest but for now she would try to divert as much as possible. She was still on top of him and hadn't fully realized this yet to be embarrassed.

"Tobir-oh… am I interrupting something?" Hashirama looked at them with a glint in his eyes that spelt trouble while Sakura blushed in mortification. From another perspective it looked as though they had engaged in some type of sexual activity. The table had been pushed aside, her hair was tousled and her skirt rode up dangerously high.

"I'll just leave you guys to it." Those were Hashirama's parting words as he skipped out of the house.

* * *

So what do you guys think? I'm open to suggestions on what/who you'd like to see in later chapters.

Thank you to everyone who has review/followed/favorited. It really means a lot.


	7. Chapter 7

In the moments after Hashirama skipped out there was a beat of silence between the two left in the room. Slowly Sakura started to come to her senses that her current position on top of Tobirama was not only inappropriate, but had given his brother the wrong idea about them. Well, in such a situation as this the most logical solution would have been to quickly dislocate herself from his person, however her mind and emotions had different ideas completely. Not only was she frozen with a mixture of humiliation and embarrassment, her treacherous eyes were locked in an intense staring competition with the male below her. It wasn't often that Sakura found herself in such a situation, and she guessed neither did he. Maybe they stayed like that for a minute or for an hour, all she knew was it was starting to get a tad bit awkward. It seemed as though he was patiently waiting for her to get off, not staring romantically into her eyes like inner had suggested.

With as much dignity that she could muster, the pink haired woman gently eased herself up, out of quite possibly the worst situation she had been in, in a while. However, Tobirama had other ideas. His hands planted themselves onto her waist and slowly brought them back down to him, to resume her straddling position over him. His eyes seemed to relax a little, which they rarely ever did, and clouded over with something that looked a little like desire but wasn't strong enough to be lust. Sakura's breath hitched in her throat as she watched him intently for what he would do next. Kami knew that there was no way in hell that she would be making the first move, in fear of rejection. Years of this from Sasuke had somewhat damaged her capacity for failure and sometimes still haunted her to this day.

His hands squeezed her sides softly before slowly caressing her lower back and hips. Tobirama knew exactly what he was doing. He knew that this issue with the elders would cause her to avoid him completely, and he had to admit that he had become rather fond of her and the company she provided. He wasn't willing to give this up just yet, however is also wasn't willing to let the subject drop. He had tested her truthfulness, and loyalty to her teammates and she had yet to disappoint him. In his mind he knew that there was a very good chance that she knew exactly what had happened to his former students and thus wanted to spend this little intimate opportunity in case they went from friends to foes.

Tobirama was a product of his time. In his generation feminism and equality didn't exist. Women's rights didn't exist. Anything that even implied anything other and patriarchy didn't exist. Therefore he saw no harm in gently guiding her forward to place a chaste kiss upon her lips. He knew that she didn't expect it, but nor did he care. Right now he wanted a type of intimacy with her that was hard to come by during his era. A part of his person that was often supressed, truly desired possession over the girl. He wanted to do what was usually done in his time and make a claim over her so no other man could touch her like he currently was. The purpose of a claim to purely for possession, not marriage. There was a lot a stigma surrounded by the women who found themselves in such circumstances.

He didn't care about this though, right now the most important feeling was her slightly grinding up against his body to deepen the kiss even more. He reciprocated accordingly and weaved a hand though her hair in order to angle her face into a more comfortable position. His other hand had wiggled its way up her shirt and rubbed soothing circles around her back to coax her to lean closer to him. At this point their bodies were more or less meshed together and their breathing had become ragged while they increased the intensity of the kiss. Their tongues intertwined and somewhere in the back of Sakura's mind she thought that this wasn't the best thing to do, but her senses completely dazed her to the point where she didn't want to the rational part of her mind anymore. She wanted to feel, she wanted to connect in a way that she had been denied for so long.

Her hands moved to tangled within his hair as she deepened the kiss even more, a while later they paused from their activities in order to put some air back into their lungs.

 _Sakura…. This is really a bad idea, I know he's hot and everything but…_ Outer had been pleading continuously and right now Sakura thought it was best to listen. This kiss had just pushed their relationship into another zone that neither were sure whether the outcome would be good or bad.

Tobirama could see the conflict bubbling within her, keeping her here when she was obviously starting to doubt her actions would damage whatever progress he had made, so with a sigh he dropped his fingers from her hips and allowed her to get up. Upon standing, Sakura's once strong demure around him had become skittish and shy.

"Did I scare you, _Sakura_?" deliberately dropping is tone an octave or so Tobirama watched her like a hawk and took slow purposeful steps towards her while her opted to retreat as he came ever closer.

Soon enough, she had backed herself into the wall and cursed herself for her stupidity. Tobirama's hands came up either side of her head so now she was looking directly into his eyes.

"I'm not scared of anything, _Tobirama_ ", her defiant edge came back with her refusal to back down from what seems to be a challenge.

At this point, Tobirama had already made his mind up. He wanted her. He wanted this enigma that was Haruno Sakura. He wanted the girl who could break the earth with a single punch, yet use these same hands to heal a nation. He wanted her all to himself. Dipping his head again he lips made contact to hers with a certainty that wasn't there previously. Pulling back once more to gaze into her emerald eyes he whispered slowly, "Don't think for a second that I've forgotten about the elders, but trust you and I trust that you wouldn't willing do anything to harm Konoha. Right, _Sakura_?"

Staring back into his dark eyes, Sakura understood the intent behind his words. By kissing her he was opening himself up in a way that he had never done before, but any sort of betray from her would see the end what they had newly established and quite probably her life.

"I understand." The enormity of the situation hit her and she knew that she had to tell someone, mostly likely Tsunade. With a few parting words and a tender albeit small smile from Tobirama, Sakura took her leave and made a beeline for the orphanage to find Naruto in the hopes of dragging him to see Tsunade with her. The walk to the orphanage gave Sakura some much needed time to clear her thoughts on what had just happened between Tobirama and herself.

 _I'm not sure whether he likes you... Or just wants claim over you…_

 _I don't know either, Outer. I didn't expect any of this…_

* * *

Since his healing Itachi had been enjoying his new lease on life, it seemed as though all of his sacrifices had turned out for the better. He had his family back. But not only that, his village was safe thanks to his selflessness. Although a small part of him worried over the safety of Sasuke and what punishment would befall him for the murder of the Elders. The older Uchiha couldn't remember being so positive about life. Looked to the corner to observe his mother smile faintly at his father, his mind drifted back to the fateful day he had to massacre his own clan. Even in the face of death, his parents had supported his alliance to his village and gave him closure as he killed them in cold blood.

What village would order a person to kill their own family? Their own flesh and blood?

This is a question that had plagued him for many years after their deaths. If it wasn't for his will of fire, Itachi was sure that he would have succumbed to the manipulation of Madara and destroyed Konoha for what they made him do. Even still the bitterness sometimes gripped his soul so hard that it took all of his strength to force down the hatred.

Sasuke had told them that soon he would reveal the truth to the people of Konoha and openly admit that he was the cause of the death of the Elders. For once in his life Itachi didn't view their deaths to be a waste of live. He knew very well that they weren't the ones to order the massacre, but he knew that did nothing to stop it and watched idly as his clan was pushed to the edge of society. There were times when the Uchiha heir would question what life would have been like if he actually sided with his father and supported the Coup. Would they still be alive? Or killed by their hatred?

The former ANBU soldier stared unseeingly ahead, his eyes cloudy with the memories that haunted him, memories of the night that decided his fate. The unsuspecting Men, women and children he had killed all in the name of peace, all in the name of his village. He was redeemed, but they were buried and gone. The ones who had nothing to do with the coup and were only guilty by association. Fugaku eyed Itachi with a thoughtful expression on his face. Who would have thought that he would have a son so selfless and devoted to his village? The small feeling of pride mustered within him as he remembered when he had learnt of Itachi's loyalties.

He and his wife had their knees folded beneath them on a sit, as they sat side by side and awaited Itachi's entrance. They knew he had been sent to kill them, yet they couldn't be prouder. The kill family in the sake of what you believed in. how many could do such a thing? None that he knew.  
Fugaku pondered the final moments of his life, on the night he was killed when Itachi sobbed quietly with a katana extended from his arm.

" _The way we think is different, but I'm still proud of you… you truly are a gentle child…"_

Not once did he regret his action, but had more or less come to see things in a different light. His curse of hatred had been lifted and Kami had blessed him with a second change to get things right. He'd be damned if he messed up again.

* * *

Unfortunately for the pinked hair kunoichi, instead of finding Naruto, she should Sasuke. Well to be precise he found her. They were now sitting on top of the roof to her house in silent while the wind softly blew over them. She didn't know what he wanted, but was fairly certain it had to do with his family.

"Tobirama knows I am aware of what happened to the elders." Her ex-crush just nodded in acceptance of her words, not seemingly surprised.

"I'm sorry for threatening you." His apology was short and simple, another way of him showing that he didn't really care if she accepted it or not, he was doing his best.

A soft sigh escaped her lips as she pondered what to say next, something to get him out of this mess he had created and dragged Naruto and her into. "It's okay. Well, it's not but you're doing the best that you can." Eyeing his profile she asked, "When will you tell Tsunade?"

"Now… come with me." It sounded like a command but she knew very well that he was asking, and once more she found herself questioning how much she really knew about her former teammate. He was asking for her support, he was asking that she stand by him when he needed her the most.

"Alright let's go."

Tsunade closed her eyes, hiding the hazel eyes that lay beneath her lids. Her before her was her prized student and a stupid brat did whatever he wanted to. How was she going to explain to the council and Daimyo that the Elders had been killed by the very same shinobi she had fought to pardon. She was going to be the laughing stock of the nation.

Tsunade didn't take disgrace very well.

Opening her eyes, they now had a razor sharp tint to them. On one hand she could sympathize with his actions and understand where his emotions stemmed from, but on the other hand murder was murder and she couldn't let his getaway scot free.

"Let me ask you something, Uchiha. You killed the Elders because they didn't stop your clan from being massacred, but why haven't you killed Hiruzen? I mean, as the Hokage at the time, wouldn't that make him directly responsible for the death of your clan?"

Sasuke froze at her questioning and mentally questioned his own motives. Killing Hiruzen had never even occurred to him, in his mind the fault was entirely the Elders and Danzō.

"Hiruzen-san disagreed with Danzō's methods."

"How do you know the elders didn't?"

"I don't."

There was a beat of silence as the temperature of the room dropped by a few noticeable degrees. Sakura stood to the side of Sasuke, hands clasped in front of her and legs crossed at the ankles. She was anxious and felt torn, between her mentor and teammate.

"Hiruzen sacrificed his life for the village, the elders have done no such thing. I don't not regret their deaths nor will I apologize for justice."

"Hmm. Brave words by a foolish boy. However honourable you think you are, you seem to forget that it is always the ones you are about that will suffer. I'll be blunt with you. No one in their minds is going to want to lose a valuable asset like the Sharingan, so you're safe. But what about Sakura? The teammate with no special clan to defend her or an irreplaceable blood line? Answer me."

Clenching his hand in frustration he retorted, "I'll protect her, you'll protect her, and Naruto will protect her. It doesn't matter anyway, Sakura can protect herself. She's not weak." The last part was said so softly she nearly missed it, but what she didn't miss was the slight look of approval that glinted within Tsunade's eyes.

"I'll hold an emergency meeting with the council and the necessary people tomorrow morning. Tonight I want you to sneak your family in so that they may attend. Nobody must know of them until I say so, understand?"

"Hai, Hokage-sama!"

"Hai."

* * *

They had returned to Sakura's house and were currently laying on her bed, Sasuke was on his back with one arm behind his head and the other over his eyes, while Sakura was on her side facing him. He looked so peaceful with his eyes closed. In their genin days he always looked haunted, on edged ready to attack, but now… it was different. He was different. Never in a million years did she think that she'd be lying on the same bed as Uchiha Sasuke.

Neither did she ever think he'd turn and put his hand on her cheek.

* * *

 **Sorry this is late guys, but I hope you like it. I'm really liking the TobixSaku moment in this chapter. I hope things aren't going too fast but then again I don't want it to be too slow either.**

 **If you guys have anything you want to see let me know so that I can try and add it in.**

 **I plan on rewriting the first 3 chapters soon, to make the writing better and also I want to be finished with this story in a few more chapters. Right now I don't plan making this story have more than 15 chapter but we'll see.**

 **Thanks again. R &R :)**


	8. Chapter 8

Time froze when his caressed her cheek softly, almost lovingly. This was the most emotion she'd ever seen on in his face and as much as she hated to admit, it scared her a little. Leaning forward the dark haired boy closed the distance between their lips before she promptly turned her head away, stopping what could have happened before it even started. After few beats of silence Sasuke resumed his previous position and a tired sigh escaped his lips.

"What changed?"

She pondered this before she answered him, "You tried to kill me." He scoffed at this and turned his face to her direction.

"It's more than that. Tell me."

He wanted the truth and he wanted honesty, for all his arrogance Sasuke could see that something inside her had noticeably changed. Even on the battle field she wasn't this cold towards him, this was a recent development and he was determined to find out what encouraged it. He supposed she was still angry about him getting Naruto involved but he doubted it; she was much too hostile. Almost as if she her previous affection for him had been given to someone else so she no longer saw the point in playing nice. He had a sneaking suspicion that he had been replaced, but felt no malice as she was never his in the first place.

"Who is he?"

Her cheeks exploded in red and pink while she hastily tried to cover her face and regain her composure, "who?" a nervous laughter escaped her as she dismissed him and stood up with the excuse of needing to use the bathroom. He had dragged her back onto the bed before she could escape; they were now in a precarious position that looked a little too sexual for his tastes but he didn't mind as long as he got her to talk. His body hovered over her with both of his arms at the side of her head, effectively trapping her under him. He face leaned dangerously close to hers, while she squirmed under him – trying to break free.

"Get off me before I break your jaw, Sasuke." Heeding her warning, he flopped back onto his side and peered at her curiously, at least she wasn't trying to escape again. He sighed irritably, she was starting to annoy him.

"I'm not an idiot, just tell me."

Sakura looked over at him hesitantly before murmuring a little response, to which he nearly laughed.

"Tobirama? Isn't he a bit too old for you?" his lips curled up to form a little smirk.

"N-no, he's not old! Urgh, don't be such an idiot Sasu-cakes." She responded tersely but smiled a little as he scowled at the nickname she had given him, he hated it. It made him sound soft and cuddly. Uchiha men were most definitely not cute, nor were they cuddly. They were handsome and strong, Sasuke thought as he sulked.

"You don't even know how old he is."

"I do!" she bit back, but curse mentally when he realized he was right.

"Tell me then."

Sakura turned her head up and refused to meet his questioning gaze that was directed towards her. "I'm not telling you." Even still Sakura wasn't sure what her feelings towards Tobirama was; of course there was some type of attraction but she didn't know whether it was just lust or the beginnings of a proper relationship that they had yet to establish.

It was weird. This feeling of normalcy that they had created out of the blue. It comforted him to know that perhaps she had forgiven him for his transgressions just a little bit; he didn't expect her to forgive him completely but he thought it would have taken longer. For one of the first times in his life, the Uchiha felt a genuine tug of regret in his heart. He wished he treated her better, he wished he paid more attention… he wished he took her with him when he left the village that night. Of course he would never tell her this, what use was it to bring up uncomfortable memories of the past?

The first few months with Orochimaru had been hard; he missed Team 7 dearly, and the only thing that motivated him was the prospect of revenge and power. If it wasn't for that he would have ran back home as fast as he could. The hideout was damp and lonely; every night there were screams that echoed off the walls and came from the direction of Kabuto's lab. It was no place for a child and only now, years later, did he realize that's what he was. A child playing a grown man's game. He was thankful that he had Naruto, who refused to give up on him, Kakashi who taught in the importance of bonds, and Sakura, who showed him genuine affection since the death of his parents. Of course only in hindsight did he know that he had taken it all for granted but the universe had a strange way of going back to equilibrium. He guessed that was the way of life, all things balanced each other out for the better. Good would always outsmart evil and justice was inevitable.

A shy smile landed on his face and Sakura made sure she took notice; he was opening up to her, he was apologizing, he was trying to be better. Sakura knew she wouldn't forgive him just like that, but he was trying and she would accept this. Deciding that they had spent enough time on the bed and in her house, she grabbed him and decisively marched out of the house, "Let's go find Naruto."

The Uchiha allowed himself to be pulled like a rag doll for he knew no amount of protests would stop her for manhandling him. He sighed. After about twenty minutes they found the blonde knucklehead with his father – as usual – near the academy. It looked like some sort of activity for the orphans to cheer them up and brighten their spirits. Their eyes were wide with amazement as the young children practically absorbed everything that was said to them by Minato. It was clear that they idolized him and wanted to be as attentive as possible. I mean, who would pass up the chance to hear one of the greatest shinobi of all time?

They were in a clear space with dummies on one end while the children, Naruto and Minato were at the other end.

"The aim of this is to throw the Kunai right at the center of the dummy. Like this." His demonstration didn't fail to leave them in awe. In one swift movement, just a tiny flick of his wrist, the dummy was impaled with his weapon. They all lined up and practiced, clearly enjoying the encouragement and constructive criticism that was sent their way.

Not many shinobi villages acknowledged it, but without the children there would be no legacy to leave behind. They were the one who grew up to carry the burden left by the previous generation.

Naruto came to stand by his teammate and hugged them enthusiastically, it was clear in his eyes that growing up that this was the type of attention he would have loved. Instead of hatred and scorn, we wanted care and compassion. He also couldn't help but notice that Sasuke and Sakura had fixed whatever was wrong with them which made him sigh with relief internally.

"So what brings you guys here?"

"We missed you, Naruto-

"No we didn't." Sasuke cut her off but it was too late, his nemesis was already smiling so brightly he could have put the sun out of work.

"Aww, don't be shy Sasu-cakes, just admit it hmm."

"Anyways," Sakura interrupted before it could turn into an argument, "we wanted to see how you were."

Naruto filled them in on what they had been doing for the past couple of weeks, setting up the orphanage, giving the kids something productive to do in order to try and counteract the post-traumatic stress and psychological harm due to the loss of their families and homes. They were advocating adoption which saw great results with at least six children a week finding new families. The number didn't seem like a lot but they knew that when Konoha was rebuilt the numbers would skyrocket with the prospect of financial stability and peace. The task that they had was undoubtedly important to the restoration of Konoha and Sakura was proud that Naruto, who had first-hand experience, could offer guidance at a time like this.

While the children were fully occupied, Minato had strolled up to them with a kind smile on his face, it was good to see the people who his son cherished so much.

"Hello there, Sasuke-kun, Sakura-chan." They greeted him with equal politeness and began a friendly conversation on how he was settling back in Konoha and among other things.

They stayed until the around late afternoon before being granted the opportunity to grab Naruto along with them. It was just like old times with the members of Team Seven roaming the streets of Konoha while they chatted, mostly Naruto and Sakura, amiably between each other. When they had decided that there was pretty much nothing else for them to do, the trio found themselves back at the Haruno residence uncharacteristically bored with squat to do. Since the decimation of the village they rarely had any free time so when it was given to them they didn't know what to do with it. Half of the village had been restored and due to the fact that it had to be built from scratch it gave the Hokage to opportunity to rearrange the layout of the village. Obviously the Hokage tower was still at the centre but different headquarters were in different sections in order to stop one side from being defenceless. Previously ANBU headquarters, Intelligence Headquarters, Interrogation headquarters and anything shinobi affiliated was next to the Hokage tower, but this time Tsunade had other ideas.

The ANBU building was relocated to the north of the village, Intelligence to the south, Interrogation to the West and Tactics to the East. This was so that there we shinobi on all sides of the village, leaving no weak spots. Also, in conjunction with their first emergency meeting since they got back from the war, as the works progressed Tsunade had started to change the duties that she gave people. For example they recognised that it would be impossible to get Tobirama to sense everyone in the village and even if he managed it, what would happen when he left? So she tasked him, with some of the Nara's to come up with a type of sensor that everyone ninja had to register with, using their chakra.

This sensor was then programmed into the village walls and collected data of who was leaving the village, what time they left and when they came back. It was still a work in progress but Tsunade figured that if it worked on the ninja population then they could introduce it to the civilians. Of course it had issues because leaving the village didn't necessarily mean one left Fire country so the plan was to also put these sensors on the edge of the border. Tobirama had been working hard to solve the issue and would often wake up at dawn every day to travel there and test out the sensors.

As for Hashirama, it made absolutely no sense for such a skilled man, the God of Shinobi no less, to be sitting around idly, so he was sent to the smaller villages around Konoha and rebuilt them also. This was good because not only was it a quick was to restore damaged buildings but it also gave the Daimyo more faith in Konoha and he granted them more powers and additional funding to help with the financial crisis.

Konoha's debt problem was still there, months had passed but it was a big issue that would go away until the village was back in tiptop shape, all shinobi were back on their feet and the civilians had jobs and their businesses again. The progress was slow, but the results were encouraging. As for Sakura, once she and the nurses had managed to operate on the critically injured, they then proceeded fully update the destroyed records. However they were saved massive amounts of time from something Hashirama had suggested. Currently in Konoha there was only one hospital, and it was _massive_. With over two thousands cases a day and over five hundred active staff, it was a bustling environment. It was located right in the centre of the village so that it was easily accessible no matter whether you lived. Hashirama pointed out that maybe they should build about twenty clinics around the village and appoint the civilian doctors to do the blood tests and whatnot to help them gather the necessary data that was needed, instead of everybody coming to the hospital. These clinics were to also be allowed to distribute medicines and perform routine operations. This was a massive success as in the first week the normally busy hospital wasn't nearly as crowded as before and Sakura was no long always rushing to keep to her schedule. Overall the efficiency of the village was better and everything was a lot smoother than it was before.

Currently the three were lying down on her living room floor, staring at the ceiling owlishly.

"Dobe, Sakura and I have spoken to the Hokage… we're sneaking my family in tonight… and there's going to be a meeting early tomorrow morning." Naruto nodded at his words, it seemed as though everything was finally coming together in order for the truth to come out.

"They're literally on the outskirts of the village but there's so many patrols now... they're more efficient too, with most of them having an Inuzuka in the squad. It's not gunna be easy." For once Naruto said something that had slipped their minds, security had been beefed up substantially.

"How about we leave before it gets dark to avoid suspicion and then sneak back in at around eleven – just before the patrols become more alert because… well bad things usually happen at night."

"Wait… what about the sensors at the walls? They'll notice if we come back in with chakra signatures that can't be identified…" when an unrecognized chakra signature entered, nothing happened per say, but it was flagged up on the system and investigated almost immediately. And unfortunately for them, it was Tobirama who did the investigations. In his home Shikamaru had helped him to set up a little device that beeped a little when this happened, it also gave the names, ranks and times of those who came in and out. Sakura relayed this information back to Sasuke and Naruto. The latter groaned while Sasuke frowned a little. This was a lot more complicated than they expected.

"How about… Sakura… you stay behind and distract…"

"…"

"Huh, how could Sakura distract Tobirama-san? They barely know each other, teme!"

"That's where you're wrong, baka…"

"…What aren't you guys telling me?"

"Sakura and Tobirama, have a little _thing_ going on."

"Shut up Sasuke, we don't have a _thing_! He's a really good friend…"

They basked in silence for a while, absorbing the information that had been presented.

"Umm, well… do you think you can distract your friend long enough for us to get Sasuke's family back into Konoha?"

"I hope so. We are you going to take them, Sasuke?"

"My flat."

"Alright, I'll get Tobirama to come here, so he can't hear the alarm in his house. Sound good?"

The rest of her teammates nodded and then proceeded to get up. The time now was just past 6, Sasuke and Naruto had to get ready to leave by seven, when the sun would start to set and she would use this time to invite Tobirama over, but she had no idea how she was going to make him stay so late at night. Also, there was a chance that if Hashirama was a home perhaps he would be the one to investigate. She sincerely hoped otherwise.

She felt a little bad for her sneakiness but it had to be done. After the boys had left her house she had changed into something that was a lot more snug; her attire was casual, with her wearing jeans that went up to her knees with a plain black top that clung a little too tightly to her body and a deep blue cardigan on top to protect from the occasional strong gust of wind. It wasn't seductive by any means but it was just enough to make you look for an extra second or so.

Nervously walking up to the door, she knocked three times before stepping back in mild anticipation. Her wait was short as Tobirama opened the door with a greeting, he had stepped aside to allow her entry but she quickly declined and offered if he wanted to come to her place instead. The request had seemed a bit forward but she graced him with a small, hesitant smile that changed his mind. Before she knew it his shoes were on and they were already at her house.

Upon entering, Sakura discretely checked the clock that was hung up on her living room wall. It was only around eight, she wondered how she was going to keep him occupied for three to four more hours.

Well, she had some ideas in her head but she didn't know if it would work – she didn't know if she was that type of girl. Shaking these thoughts from her head Sakura steeled herself; she was a shinobi and would protect her teammates no matter the cost. The pinked haired medic took a small breath before taking a hold of one of his hands and smiling shyly into his eyes. He seemed a little taken aback – obviously not expecting this much boldness from her but he didn't pull his hand back.

"How about I show you around?"

He nodded and consent and allowed her to lead him into her stunning garden; the setting sun made it harder to see but illuminated the cherry tree that was right in the middle and allowed light to bounce of the little pond that was situated at the corner of the garden. Tobirama eyed her as she let go of his hand and turned to him, the little light that was shining lit up half her face while the rest of it was shrouded in darkness. She looked beautiful.

However, he was a seasoned shinobi and could tell there was something up. It was unusual the way she grabbed his hand, it was unusual the way she smiled at him and he was definitely suspicious when she invited him out. He had expected her to avoid him for a few days while she came to terms while what had happened in his home just a few hours ago. She was up to something and he was determined to find out; never would he let a woman catch his off guard and distract him. He was raised to always be alert, even in the presence of family. And Sakura was no exception.

"During my time, to invite a man to your home at this time was an invitation for sex." He stared at her pointedly while she weighed his words.

"Maybe, that's why I invited you."

* * *

 **Trying to update as much as possible, because exams are coming up.**

 **Should I put a lemon in the next chapter?**

 **Thanks again. R &R.**

 **:)**


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